Hannibal: Before the Second Punic War Quiz

Answer: Barca

Carthaginians did not normally use last names, however, at times they were necessary to distinguish between those who had the same name. Historians use the term Barcid as an adjective to describe those people who were part of Hannibal's clan, with Barca being the last name.

The name means "lightening", as in the way Hannibal's father fought with lightening fast attacks. History books typically just use the name Hannibal (it does stand alone, doesn't it?), Hannibal the Barcid, or Hannibal Barca.

Answer: True

Hannibal was born in Carthage, which was located in modern day Tunisia, in 247 BC. His father was an important Carthaginian leader during the first Punic War, which was fought with Rome from 264-241 BC. There is absolutely no information regarding Hannibal's mother, but some sources state that the couple had six children together.

Hannibal's name, meaning "Ba'al Has Been Gracious, is a reflection on the ancient Carthaginian religion that worshiped the god Ba'al, as did other Phoenician peoples. The name was also used as a title, meaning "lord" or "owner".

Answer: Hamilcar

Hamilcar Barca was a Carthaginian general who was born sometime around 275 BC. Very little is known about his early life, as his family was not considered to be Carthaginian aristocracy. Some sources state that they originally came to Carthage from Cyrene, which was located in modern day Libya.

Hamilcar led a mostly mercenary army in Sicily from 247-241 BC, launching guerilla attacks against the Romans there. He refused to accept the peace conditions in Sicily that were originally laid out, such as surrendering their weapons and paying reparations, and, surprisingly, the Romans allowed Hamilcar and his army to return to Carthage with their honor unbroken.

Answer: Iberia

Carthage was already economically depressed after the loss during the First Punic Wars, and Hannibal's father decided to leave for Iberia, modern Spain and Portugal, looking to improve his family's status. He was encouraged by the city of Gades, which is modern day Cadiz, to use his knowledge to help with the control of some of the tribes who lived in Iberia, modern day Span and Portugal. This took a lot of nerve, as Hamilcar had no ships to transport the men who accompanied him. They marched all the way there.

Hannibal was nine years old when his father prepared to leave, Hannibal pleaded to come along. This gave rise to the story that Hamilcar agreed as long as his son would take a vow to NEVER make friends with the Romans. Hamilcar drowned in battle when Hannibal was eighteen years old.

Answer: Hasdrubal the Fair

Hasdrubal the Fair was Hamilcar's son-in-law. He took over the command because it was believed that Hamilcar's sons were too young to leader the army. Preferring diplomacy to war, he is known for including the Kingdom of Numidia, in modern Algeria, in the Carthaginian domain, founding the city of Cartagena in Spain, and even making a treaty with the Romans that divided Iberia between the two foes.

During this time Hannibal learned and rose through the military ranks. He was twenty-six years old when Hasdrubal was assassinated, and, according to the Roman historian Livy, looked and acted so much like his father that the veterans in the army were more than happy to welcome him as their new commander-in-chief.

Answer: Imilce

It should not be surprising that Imilce was Spanish, as Hannibal basically grew up in Iberia. Livy stated that she was from Castulo, a Spanish city that was allied with Carthage. Aside from that, very little is known about her, although some sources claim she was a princess. While some sources say that she and Hannibal had a son named Haspar, others do not mention him.

Answer: Battle of the Tagus

According to ancient historians, Livy and Polybius, Hannibal's first major victory occurred in Iberia in 220 BC at the Battle of the Tagus. Hannibal's army, outnumbered four to one, crossed the Tagus River. This action, however, had been well-planned; the Carthaginians had made it impossible for the pursuing Iberian tribes to easily cross by fortifying the riverbanks and funneling the tribes into narrow crossings where they could be ambushed by the cavalry or simply drowned. Those who did make it across were met by Hannibal's infantry and the war elephants. Was this the first sign of Hannibal's tactical genius?

Answer: Surus

Elephants were expensive to keep, and they were easily frightened during battle, sometimes turning on their own military units. Many ancient military leaders, however, believed that keeping war elephants was worth the trouble. Just how long Hannibal had Surus is a bit unclear, but it is known that the Carthaginians used elephants in the First Punic War and also in their Iberian campaigns.

Surus reportedly only had one tusk, and some historians believe that is how he earned his name, with Surus deriving from "sudus", a stake used for fortifications. Others believe Surus was possibly a Syrian elephants, and that his name meant "The Syrian". Accounts say that Surus wore a red cloth, and that Hannibal would use his height to help him survey battlefields. Surus did accompany Hannibal in his famous march across the Alps. Thirty-seven war elephants were taken, and all but six died during the crossing. Five of the six died the next winter, with only Surus remaining.

Answer: True

Unfortunately, while he was fighting in Spain, Hannibal's army attacked and looted Saguntum, modern day Sagunto. Because Roman leaders had feared Hannibal's growing power, they had made an alliance with the city. Because the city was a Roman protectorate, Hannibal had violated the treaty, which said he was cease hostilities with Rome. In reality, Hannibal had no intention of just sitting around and letting Rome have it all. He was already planning his invasion of Italy. The Second Punic War (218-201 BC) was about to begin!

Answer: Alexander the Great

This reportedly happened during a conversation with Scipio Africanus, the Roman general credited with winning the Second Punic War. The two opposing generals are believed to have met after the war, while Hannibal was living in exile in Syria sometime around 194 BC.

Hannibal said he choose Alexander because he had a relatively small army that traveled over a great distance. Pyrrhus was chosen in second place because he knew how to organize a camp, and was able to win people to his side. He chose himself as third, although did suggest that he would have placed himself ahead of Alexander if he had, in fact, defeated Scipio!